Facing Life as Brothers
by MH Cynogriffon
Summary: Fili and Kili were always close, but now they are on a journey with their uncle to restore him to his rightful throne in Erebor. Unfortunately the journey is fraught with peril, and the two brothers may lose each other. (Will also have cute fluff scenes and a good dose of humor from our favorite dwarves!) AU NO SLASH!
1. Meeting 'The Burgler'

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters, songs, and, places. This is slightly movie verse.

The Shire: a green lush valley filled with kind but lazy hobbits. These hobbits had lived their lives without anything startling or unusual happening, but on the night of the 26 of April 2941, two dwarves were seen walking leisurely through the Shire paths. Two more had passed before them, but they had gone unseen. However, (Much to the alarm of many hobbits, who had probably never seen a dwarf) these two made no move to hide their approach. In fact, one began to sing while the other played a fiddle.

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_"Ho! Ho! To the bottle I go!_

_To heal my heart and drown my woe._

_Rain may fall and wind may blow,_

_And many miles be still to go,_

_But under a tall tree I will lie,_

_And let the clouds go sailing by."_

Kili burst in to laughter at the end of his song, "Why Fili, I believe we are the biggest disturbance this Shire has ever seen!"

Fili threw his fiddle in to its case and shared in his brothers laughter, "I have to agree with you brother, I swear I just saw a hobbit shake a frying pan at us!"

"Do you think they've ever seen a dwarf before?"

"I'll have to say no little brother; this is clearly a new experience for these poor hobbits."

Kili nodded and stroked his still-growing beard, "Well, if we are the first dwarves they've seen we need to make a good first impression."

"Of course," Fili replied, "but how will we do that?"

Kili scratched his head and frowned at his brother, "Well, Uncle Thorin said your voice is louder."

"Yours is better," Fili countered, "besides, I've just got my fiddle out again."

"True true," Kili said, "Well Fili, you win, let's try the one we heard at my 72 birthday."

Fili nodded and started up a lively tune on his fiddle. Kili took a deep breath and started singing with a rather good baritone.

"_Oh you can search far and wide,  
You can drink the whole town dry,  
But you'll never find a beer so brown,_

_Oh you'll never find a beer so brown,_

_As the one we drink in our hometown,  
As the one we drink in our hometown.  
You can drink your fancy ales,  
You can drink them by the flagon,  
But the only brew for the brave and true...  
..Comes from the Great Red Dragon!"_

Kili finished and he and Fili started laughing again.

"Well Kili, I must say you've improved!"

"Me improved? Since when did you pick up a tune after hearing it once? And from so long ago!"

Fili snorted, "Long ago? It's only been five years since."

Kili nodded, "Yes, but that's long enough for me to forget."

"You remembered the lyrics."

"They're easy ones."

Fili rolled his eyes and put his fiddle in its case for the second time. Kili glared at him, "What? Is my voice really that bad?"

Fili sighed and said in the perfect 'big brother' tone, "Of course not. But apparently you eyesight is." He pointed with a gloved finger at a hobbit hole, "There's the mark Uncle said to look for, right there as plain as day."

Kili smiled, "Why so it is. Well, let's go meet our burglar!"

They laughed again, hopped up the few steps, and knocked on the door.

Unbeknownst to them, 32 very startled hobbits would have nightmares of singing dwarves bearing bloody swords for the rest of the week.

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Bilbo Baggins was one very flustered hobbit. Two dwarves had mysteriously showed up on his doorstep. They had come one at a time, but they seemed to know each other and implied that more where coming. The dwarves were currently raiding his larder and his cellar.

_Ding dong!_

Bilbo gasped, it couldn't be happening again! He stomped up to the door while railing on about these confounded dwarves.

He reached the carved oaken door and wrenched it open. Behind it were two more dwarves. One had blonde hair/beard and grey eyes, while the other had brown hair/beard and dark brown eyes. They were obviously related.

The dwarves smiled at him.

"Fili." Said the blonde

"And Kili." Finished the other.

"At your service." They both said while bowing simultaneously.

Bilbo nearly fainted.

(The two songs are from FOTR and ROTK. I do not own them.) Kili is 77 while Fili is 82.

**PLEASE REVIEW! **OR I'L MAKE SURE KILI DIES! (JK)


	2. Bets, Ale, and Somber Thoughts

Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own the hobbit characters or anything Tolkien made up. Neither do I own the few lines I used from Peter Jackson's script.**

**A lot of this chapter is movie script at the beginning, the end has less.**

**Apologies for the late ch. I've been on vacation and I thought I'd have WiFi, but I didn't. ): **

"No, No, You've got the wrong house!" Bilbo said, after getting over his first shock, and he proceeded to try and shut the door.

Kili stuck his foot in the doorway, efficiently stopping it from closing, "There's been a cancel?"

"No one told us." Fili added over Kili's shoulder, sounding slightly hurt.

Bilbo frowned, "Can-No- nothing's been canceled."

Fili and Kili brightened instantly. "Well that's a relief!" Kili said while he shouldered the door open for Fili. They sauntered into the immaculate house and dumped their weapons on Bilbo with Fili saying, "Careful with these, I just had 'em sharpened."

Kili and Fili chuckled at the offended hobbit's expression, Bilbo looked as if he were about to explode. Fili dropped his cloak on the floor as Kili looked around. Bagg-end, as Bilbo's home was called, was a nice little place, it had a beautiful entrance that was lighted up with a chandelier. To the right of the entry was a large living room, and to the left was the dining room. Straight ahead lead to the kitchen, which connected to the dining room.

"It's nice, this place. D'you do it yourself?" Kili asked as he examined his boots.

"No," Bilbo said, "it's been in the family for years." His eyes widened as his saw Kili scraping dirt off a boot on a decorative box, "That's my mother's glory box, could you please not do that!"

Kili ignored him but stopped when he saw a brown haired/bearded, tall (For a dwarf), and thickly muscled dwarf walk up. The dwarf smiled, "Fili, Kili, come on, give us a hand!"

"Mister Dwalin!" Kili exclaimed as he threw his arm around the dwarf.

Another dwarf, this one shorter and with white hair/beard trailed Dwalin, he gestured to the table in the dining room and said, "Let's shove this into the hallway, otherwise we'll never get everybody in."

Fili and Kili laughed and followed the two older dwarves leaving Bilbo shell shocked. They slipped into the dinning room and began to move the table and more chairs into the rather large hallway.

"Well," Balin, the white haired dwarf, said while dragging in a huge chair, "you two got here fast."

Fili chuckled, "Aye, we made a bet with Bifer that we would get here before he, Bofer, and Bombor."

"And he now owes us five gold pieces!" Kili finished triumphantly.

Dwalin set down the table he was carrying, ruffled Kili's hair and said in his booming voice, "Five gold pieces? No, that is no bet at all. You two need to learn to put your life on the line. That could have been thrice as much."

Fili shrugged, "Well, we didn't know if we could make it before them."

Dwalin looked at Balin and shook his head. Balin rolled his eyes, "I'm sure they'll learn soon Dwalin. For now, grab this table and help me move it.

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Gandalf chuckled as the eight dwarves fell on top of each other and reviled a very annoyed Bilbo.

"Gandalf." Bilbo said angrily and Gandalf shrugged.

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"Well Kili," Fili said, "This Bilbo character sure is strange."

Kili nodded and shifted his grip on the large barrel of ale they were carrying, "I have to agree with you, look at him over there."

Fili turned his head and saw Bilbo trying to get Nori, who was deaf, to put back a finely carved chair back. Fili turned back to Kili and shook his head, "People these days just don't know how to have a good time.

"And I thought Elves were bad."

Fili nodded and helped Kili maneuver the barrel towards the now crowded dining room. On the way they encountered Gandalf who was taking a count.

"Oin, Gloin, Kili, Fili." He counted.

They nodded politely at the wizard and took the last steps to the dining room and set the ale down.

Kili groaned, "That barrel better have good ale in it, it sure was heavy."

Fili grunted and popped his neck, "Yep, but I bet Dwalin could've carried it with one arm."

"I won't take you on that bet," Kili said, and then he looked around, "Let see. . . There's us, Gloin, Oin, Bifer, Bofer, Bomber, Ori, Dori, Nori, Dwalin, and Balin. But where's Uncle Thorin?"

Fili scratched the back of his neck, "Well, last I heard, Uncle went to a meeting with the dwarves of the Iron Hills. He's there to ask for help."

"Help? Since when do we need help?"

Fili snorted, "Since we decided to retake a kingdom and slay a dragon."

Dwalin interrupted their conversation by grabbing their shoulders and slamming their heads together, "Hey you two! Bring some drinks and get over here!" Then he grabbed an extra mug of ale and returned to the table.

Kili rubbed his now bruised head and smiled at Fili, "Well, let's enjoy ourselves before we face death."

Fili smiled back, "and we'll face death as brothers."

"As brothers always."

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Balin sighed as he saw the two lads throw themselves in to the merriment of the other dwarves.  
_Oh Thorin, I hope you were right to let them come._

**GregsMadHatter: Thank you for being my first reviewer! *fireworks explode* Here's the 2nd chapter!**

**UnfathomableEnigma: Don't worry, I won't kill him . . . Yet. **

**Nikki: Thanks! I'll try to.**

**Guest: Thank you!**

** Luinwen-2013: YOU BETTER! or else . .. You're welcome. (I'm sure I can find a way to save him. maybe.)**

**THANK YOU for all the wonderful reviews! Keep reviewing please. Remember Kili's life is in your hands . . .**


	3. Morning Plans

**Disclaimer: don't own it. Tolkien's probably rolling in his grave right now.**

**Sorry for the long wait. I've been busy with my other story, Dreams of Fire, and yeah . . .**

_"far over the misty mountains cold  
through dungeons deep and caverns old  
we must awake ere break of day  
to find our long forgotten gold_

_the pines were roaring on the height  
the winds were moaning in the night  
the fire was red, it flaming spread  
the trees like torches blazed with light"_

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The room became quite as the song ended. Fili and Kili, who had never seen Erebor, wondered what it would have been like if the dragon had never come, if they had grown up as Princes and perhaps one day have ruled over one of the greatest kingdoms in Middle Earth. The nostalgic look on the other dwarves faces made them want to help even more. To restore Erebor to it's rightful ruler and give their people a chance to return home and live richly again.

The tomb-like silence was broken when Balin sighed and said, "Well, I'm old, and old people love their beds. Good night, sleep tight, and wake up early. If I'm not mistaken, we'll need an early start. Thorin?"

Thorin nodded, "Balin's right. It'd be best to be gone before the hobbit wakes. I need you all up before 6:00, Bombur, you can cook breakfast. Fili, Kili, you two will need to secure us some ponies, which means you should wake an hour or two early. Find some pack-ponies too."

Kili bit his lip worriedly, "Where are we going to find ponies? Didn't see any as we came up."

"I don't care, find some."

Kili looked as he might object but Fili nudged him and said, "Of course Thorin, we'll find some."

Thorin smiled briefly at his oldest nephew, "Good. Well, I suggest we all find a place to sleep. It'll be a hard day tomorrow."

The dwarves scattered across the room chattering quietly as they hunted out nooks and crannies large enough to sleep in. Kili caught up with Fili, who was heading toward the kitchen looking for a comfy couch he had seen when he came in.

"Thirteen ponies!" Kili exclaimed, "Where on Middle Earth are we going to find thirteen ponies in this Valar-forsaken Shire? Plus pack-ponies!"

Fili rolled his eyes at Kili, "It's not that hard Kili, we just ask someone. Stop freaking out."

Kili snorted, "As if any 'self respecting' hobbit would answer us. They'd probably sic a goose on us or something."

"Oh, shut up and go find somewhere to sleep."

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_They say it's what you make_  
_ I say it's up to fate_  
_ It's woven in my soul_  
_ I need to let you go_  
_ Your eyes, they shine so bright_  
_ I want to save their light_  
_ I can't escape this now_  
_ Unless you show me how_

Demons, by Imagine Dragons.

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Fili rose at precisely 5:00 in the morning. It was still dark outside, but the horizon showed signs of an early sunrise. All the dwarves were still asleep except for Bombur, who was in the spotless kitchen. Fili smiled, the fat dwarf was humming as he bustled around, eating more than he was cooking. Every now and then, he would burst out in song until one of the more light sleepers would holler at him to shove a sock in his mouth.

_How is the hobbit sleeping through this?_

Fili pondered this as he got dressed in a brown, leather tunic and dark grey trousers. As he was pulling on his boots, he looked around for Kili.

_He should already be awake, the lazy dwarfling._

He finally spotted his younger brother perched on a small couch with his head hanging off of the end; mouth open and drool on his cheek.

Fili sauntered over and poked Kili none to gently in the neck. The reaction was hardly what Fili wanted so he slapped Kili's face three times hard.

"WHAT . . ." Kili didn't get past his first word, Fili, realizing his mistake, had quickly covered Kili's mouth with his hand.

"Shhhh," Fili hushed him, "Thorin would kill us if we woke up the hobbit."

Kili shoved his hand away, "Then why did you slap me?!"

"Because _you_ were supposed to be awake fifteen minutes ago. Now hurry and get dressed, we need to find those ponies."

Kili grumbled but got dressed and the two brothers ate the eggs and ham Bombur had found hidden away in one of Bilbo's pantries. As they ate, they discussed their course of action.

"Well Fili," Kili began, "what has your brilliant mind come up with? How are we going to find thirteen ponies and, say . . . three pack-ponies? Other than asking of course"

Fili chocked on a bite of egg, "What's wrong with asking? I doubt they'd have the courage to . . . what was it? Oh yes, sic a goose on us."

Kili shrugged, "Better to be safe. But we can try it, or tell Thorin to do it himself."

Fili blanched at the idea, "and risk getting killed? No thank you."

Kili rolled his eyes, "I was just joking Fili, no one with any since would tell Uncle that."

"Tell me what?"

The dwarves jumped as Thorin emerged from around the corner.

"Nothing uncle!" They both said at the exact same time.

"Oh really?" Thorin glared at them, "shouldn't you two be going? It might be a while before you find any ponies."

Fili and Kili nodded and began to stammer.

"Of course Uncle . . ."

"We were just leaving . . ."

"Should be leaving now . . ."

"Bye!"

They stumbled out of the door, tripping on the mat in their hast to leave.

Thorin chuckled quietly, _What a pair._

**~~~MH**

**PLEASE REVIEW! Reviews are like a writers candy!**


	4. Humiliation at the Hands of a Goose

**Disclaimer: Don't own it. Just borrowing.**

Hettmi Bigfoot was a simple hobbit. She lived in Bag-shot Row beside Gaffer Gamgee and Hufflim Yamdring. Her beloved husband, Nicklow Bigfoot, had passed away, at the young age of sixty, twenty years ago. Now she lived alone in a small, but fancy, hobbit hole with the exception of a cow, three pigs, some chickens, and an old goose.

She lived a quiet life, her profession was sewing and her neighbors gave her their laundry to mend. It gave her a sturdy pay and she was content.

One day, Hettmi decided that her porch looked exceptionally comfortable. So she took her latest order of clothes outside, sat on her Grandma Kelmel's rocking chair, and began to sew.

As she started on a particularly hard piece of work, little Vobby always had a shirt or two that was near unmendable, she heard a noise that was rarely heard in Bag-shot Row. Someone was singing.

_It must be that ridiculous Gaffer Gamgee,_ she thought,_ I just know he'll come to a bad end. _

As the singing drew closer, Hettmi detected that it was a rather nice sound, she hadn't heard anyone sing since the passing of Nicklow Bigfoot, but when she saw who was singing, she had second thoughts.

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_"Just to be with you, I'd do anything_

_There is no price I wouldn't pay._

_Just to be with you, I'd give anything_

_Yes, I'd give my life away."_

"Why on Middle Earth do you like that song?" Fili asked his little brother.

"Same reason you like Ovia, it's pretty," Kili shot back.

Fili glared at him but couldn't stop the blush that came at the sound of the beautiful dwarven maid's name. He quickly changed the subject before Kili could see it, "Look Kili," he started, "we've been at this for a hour and found nothing. There is a hobbit lady siting on her quaint little porch over there," he pointed, "we could go over there and get directions.

Kili sighed, "and you think she'll tell us were thirteen ponies and three pack ponies are?"

Fili nodded, "Correct,"

Kili looked again at the hobbit lady who now looked decidedly unhappy about the dwarven intruders.

"Alright," He said, "but if anything happens, I can say 'I told you so'."

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Hettmi gasped as the two . . . brutes, for lack of a better word, opened her gate and smiled at her.

The blond one gave her a friendly wave, trying to lure her in probably, and the one with dark features called out to her, "Good morning Mam."

_It'll be better when you're gone. _She thought.

The blond one spoke, "We're wonder if you know where we can find some ponies."

Hettmi tried her best to smile, but politeness was the furthest thing from her mind.

"GOOSY!" She screamed, "GET THEM!"

The two intruders looked at her like she was mad until Hettmi's faithful goose Goosy charged them at full speed.

Hettmi couldn't help but laugh at the expressions on their faces as they leapt over the gate and ran for their lives, Goosy pecking at them every step of they way.

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Kili and Fili finally stopped running when they reached Bilbo's doorstep. All of the other dwarves were standing on the road ready and waiting, Thorin at their head.

"Did you find any laddie?" Balin asked, taking in their disheveled appearance and Fili's bleeding hand.

Kili shook his head, "No, unfortunately not. We tried to, but ended up getting chased by a goose."

Fili snorted and said in a patronizing tone "Kili, that wasn't a goose. You should know that."

Kili rolled his eyes, "Yeah, 'cause there's so many birds with white feathers, orange beaks, webbed feet, and names like Goosy, that aren't geese."

The dwarves chuckled as Fili and Kili started to argue until Thorin got fed up and yelled, "SHUT UP!" They quieted and Thorin continued, "Since we have no ponies," Here he glared at his downcast nephews, "we'll have to carry everything."

The dwarves groaned at the prospect and glared at Fili and Kili but Gandalf only looked confused.

"Thorin," he said slowly, "I bought the only ponies in the Shire yesterday morning. Didn't Dori tell you?"

All the dwarves proceeded to look at Dori who stared at the ground shuffling his feet.

Fili and Kili stood with their mouths open, scowling at the source of their humiliation.

"You . . ."

"How dare you . . ."

"Went through all that. . . "

They started hurling every curse they knew, in dwarvesh, Westronese, and, yes, Elvish, at the chastised Dori.

When they ran out of curses Thorin thanked Gandalf stiffly and motioned the dwarves to move on to the clearing in which the ponies were.

Kili turned to Fili as they walked and said bluntly, "I told you so."

**_When the reviews are coming from the readers I'll be happy,_**

**_When the reviews are coming from the readers I'll be happy,_**

**_Oh! When the reviews are coming from the readers, _**

**_when the reviews are coming from the readers,_**

**_when the reviews are coming from the readers,_**

**_I'll update faaaaasterrrrr._**

_Review replies:_

**So-sings-nightingales:**

**Thank you! That is what I've been trying to do! Like your pen name.**

**Gregg'sMadHatter: **

**I know right? He's always there at the wrong time. Here's more!**

**Apologies to the people to reviewed on chapter two, I was to tired to reply. Thank you!**

**~~MH**


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